PROBLEM SOLVING IN MATHEMATICS

WORKSHOP FOR CLASSES 8 AND 9

OFFERED JOINTLY BY
RISHI VALLEY SCHOOL, A.P., & INDIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE, BANGALORE
8–10 AUGUST, 2008

1. A

A cryptarithm is a coded arithmetic problem, in which some or all of the digits have been
replaced by letters; your task is to decode the code. (The arithmetic is done in base ten.)

App-1. Find all four digit numbers n with the following property: The digits of 4n are
the same as those of n, but arranged in the reverse order. That is, solve the following
cryptarithm: ABCD × 4 = DCBA.
App-2. Find all four digit numbers n with the following property: The digits of 9n are
the same as those of n, but arranged in the reverse order. That is, solve the following
cryptarithm: ABCD × 9 = DCBA.
App-3. In the preceding problem, what happens if 9 is replaced by 3? By 5? By 7?
App-4. Find all possible ways of writing 100 as a difference of two perfect squares.
App-5. Solve the following cryptarithm: TWO × TWO = THREE.
App-6. Solve the following cryptarithm: ABCDEF × 5 = FABCDE.
App-7. Determine, with proof, the central element of a 3 × 3 magic square made using
the numbers 1, 2, 3, . . . , 8, 9. (In a magic square, the row sums, the column sums,
and the sums of the two main diagonals are all the same.)
App-8. The figure shown represents a 4 × 4
magic square. Show that its entries a, b, a b
c, d obey the relation a + b = c + d.
Find other such properties of 4 × 4
magic squares. c d

2. A

Alg-1. Find a formula for the sum of the first n positive integers. Prove your formula in
at least two different ways.
Alg-2. Show that the sum of the first n positive odd integers is n2 . (Example: For n = 4,
we have: 1 + 3 + 5 + 7 = 16 = 42 .) Find at least two different proofs.
1
2 PROBLEM SOLVING WORKSHOP

Alg-3. Use the identity n3 − (n − 1)3 = 3n2 − 3n + 1 to show that

n(n + 1)(2n + 1)
12 + 22 + 32 + · · · + (n − 1)2 + n2 = .
6
Alg-4. Factorize the expression a4 + 4. Use your answer to find the prime factors of the
numbers 154 + 4 = 50629 and 254 + 4 = 390629.
Alg-5. Factorize the expression a5 + a4 + 1. Use your answer to find the prime factors of
the number 65 + 64 + 1 = 9073.
Alg-6. Study the following relations and find a generalized statement, with proof:

1 + 2 = 3,
4 + 5 + 6 = 7 + 8,
9 + 10 + 11 + 12 = 13 + 14 + 15,
16 + 17 + 18 + 19 + 20 = 21 + 22 + 23 + 24, ....
Alg-7. Find the remainder when x100 − 2x51 + 1 is divided by x2 − 1.
Alg-8. Given two numbers u, v, denote their sum and product by s and p, respectively
(s = u + v, p = uv). Further, denote the sum of the nth powers of u and v by an (i.e.,
an = un + vn ). Establish the following relation, true for all positive integers n:

an+2 = san+1 − pan .

Alg-9. Use the result proved above to show that the integer closest to the non-integral
 √ n
number 1 + 2 is the number
 √ n  √ n
1+ 2 + 1− 2 .
 √ n
Alg-10. Show that the integer closest to 1 + 2 is 2 more than a multiple of 4 for every
positive integer n.

3. E N T

Notation: Let a, b, c, n, . . . be integers.

• If a is a divisor of b, we write a | b. Example: 3 | 9, 11 | 66, n | (n2 − n).

• If a is not a divisor of b, we write a ∤ b. Example: 2 ∤ 3, 5 ∤ 17, n ∤ (n2 + 1).
• The greatest common divisor of a, b (also called the “highest common factor”) is
denoted by (a, b). Example: (25, 35) = 5, (21, 25) = 1.
• If (a, b) = 1 we say that a, b are coprime. Example: 21, 25 are coprime.
• If a − b is divisible by c, we write: a ≡ b (mod c). Example: 17 ≡ 11 (mod 3),
25 ≡ 9 (mod 8).

We shall take for granted, i.e., without proof, the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, which
states: “Each positive integer greater than 1 can be expressed in just one way as a product
of prime numbers”.
 PROBLEM SOLVING IN MATHEMATICS 3

NumT-1. Prove that:

(a) The sum of any two consecutive odd integers is a multiple of 4.
(b) The sum of any three consecutive integers is a multiple of 3.
(c) The sum of four consecutive integers is never a multiple of 4.
(d) The sum of any five consecutive integers is a multiple of 5.
(e) Find, with proof, a generalization based on the previous three problems.
NumT-2. Rules of divisibility. Let a number be given in base ten.
(a) Justify the rules for checking divisibility of the number by 4 and by 8.
(b) Justify the rules for checking divisibility of the number by 9 and by 11.
NumT-3. Difference of two perfect squares.
(a) Can 50 be written as a difference of two perfect squares?
(b) Determine the set of all positive integers n which can be written as a difference
of two perfect squares.
(c) Determine the integer n between 1 and 1000 that can be written as a difference
of two perfect squares in the largest number of ways.
NumT-4. Find all positive integers n for which n2 + 36n is a perfect square.
NumT-5. We wish to write each positive integer n as a sum of two or more consecutive
positive integers. Example: We can write 12 as 3 + 4 + 5, and 13 as 6 + 7. For which
n can we do this?
NumT-6. Show that 3 | n3 − n for all integers n.
NumT-7. Show that 5 | n5 − n for all integers n.
NumT-8. Is it true that 4 | n4 − n for all integers n?
NumT-9. Show that the units and tens digits of a perfect square cannot both be odd. (The
number is assumed to be written in base ten.)
NumT-10. Find all prime numbers p which are 1 less than a perfect square.
NumT-11. Find all prime numbers p which are 1 less than a perfect cube.
NumT-12. Show that if n is composite, then so is 2n − 1. Deduce that if 2n − 1 is prime,
then so is n.
NumT-13. Show that if n is odd and greater than 1, then 2n + 1 is composite. Deduce that
if 2n + 1 is prime, then n is a power of 2.
NumT-14. Suppose that a, b are a pair of positive coprime integers, and that ab is a perfect
square. Show that both a and b are perfect squares.
NumT-15. Find all integer sided rectangles with the property that the area is numerically
equal to the perimeter.
NumT-16. The radius and height of a given right circular cylinder are integers, and the
volume of the cylinder is numerically equal to 8 times the total surface area of the
cylinder. Find the least possible volume of the cylinder.
1 1 1
NumT-17. Find all pairs (a, b) of positive integers such that a + b = 50 .
4 PROBLEM SOLVING WORKSHOP

NumT-18. Divisor function. For any positive integer n, let d(n) denote its number of
divisors, with 1 and n included. Example: d(1) = 1, d(2) = 2, d(10) = 4.
(a) Determine all the integers n between 1 and 1000 for which d(n) = 3.
(b) Determine all the integers n between 1 and 1000 for which d(n) = 6.
(c) Determine all the integers n between 1 and 1000 for which d(n) is odd.
(d) For which value of n between 1 and 1000 will d(n) be the largest?
NumT-19. Pythagorean triples.
(a) Let a, b, c be three positive integers such that a2 + b2 = c2 . The triple (a, b, c) is
called a Pythagorean triple (PT). Example: (3, 4, 5) is a Pythagorean triple. If
a, b, c are coprime, then the triple is called a Primitive Pythagorean triple (PPT).
So (3, 4, 5) is a PPT, but (6, 8, 10) is only a PT. Show that the following recipé
produces infinitely many PPTs:
Choose any positive odd integer n, and compute the fraction n1 + n+2 1
. Write the sum
a
as b where a, b are coprime positive integers. Then (a, b, b + 2) is a PPT.
Example: The choice n = 3 yields the PPT (8, 15, 17).
(b) Let (a, b, c) be a PPT. Show that 60 | abc.
NumT-20. Triangular numbers.
(a) The quantity tn := 12 n(n+1) is called the nth triangular number. So the triangular
numbers are 1, 3, 6, 10, . . .. Find the set of n for which tn − 1 is a multiple of 5,
and show that tn − 2 is never a multiple of 5.
(b) Find the cycle length of the remainders when tn is divided by 6, and show
that tn − 2 is never a multiple of 6.
NumT-21. Can the product of two consecutive positive integers be a perfect square?
NumT-22. Can we find two non-zero perfect squares in the ratio 1 : 2?
NumT-23. Can we find two non-zero perfect squares in the ratio 1 : 3?
NumT-24. Can we find positive integers a, b, c such that a2 + b2 = 3c2 ?
NumT-25. Can we find three distinct perfect squares in arithmetic progression?

4. G

Geom-1. Medians of a triangle.

(a) Show that the medians of a triangle meet in a point which trisects each median.
(b) Show that the medians of a triangle divide its area into six equal parts.
(c) Show that from the medians of a triangle one can construct a triangle whose
area is 43 of the area of the original triangle.
Geom-2. Let D be the midpoint of side BC of an arbitrary triangle ABC; then △ABD and
△ACD have equal area. Show how to dissect △ABD into a minimum number of
parts which can be reassembled to cover △ACD.
Geom-3. In △ABC, the midpoint of BC is D, and the midpoint of AD is E. Line BE when
extended meets AC in F. Find the ratio in which F divides AC.
 PROBLEM SOLVING IN MATHEMATICS 5

Geom-4. Generalize the previous problem: let D be the midpoint of BC, as earlier, and
let E divide AD so that AE : ED = α. Let BE when extended meet AC in F, and let
AF : FC = β. Express β in terms of α.
Geom-5. Show that the internal bisector of an angle of a triangle divides the opposite
side in the ratio of the adjacent sides.
Geom-6. √Triangle ABC is isosceles, with AB = AC, and ∠B = 2∠A. Prove that AB : BC =
1
2 ( 5 + 1). (In other words, AB : BC is the golden ratio.)

Geom-7. Find the sum of the interior angles of a star polygon with (a) 5, (b) 7, (c) 8 sides.
Geom-8. Within a square ABCD we locate a point P such that ∠PCD = ∠PDC = 15◦ .
Prove that △APB is equilateral.
Geom-9. Show that the altitudes of a triangle meet in a point.
Geom-10. In △ABC, let the altitudes be AD, BE, CF, and let H be the point where the
altitudes meet. Show that H is the incenter of △DEF.
Geom-11. Let ABCD be a quadrilateral.
(a) Show that AC ⊥ BD if and only if AB2 + CD2 = BC2 + AD2 .
(b) Show that AC ⊥ BD if and only if the medians of ABCD have equal length.
(A median of a quadrilateral is the segment joining the midpoints of a pair of
opposite sides.)
Geom-12. A convex quadrilateral is cut by its two medians into four parts. Show that
the four parts can be assembled into a parallelogram.
Geom-13. When a sheet of paper is folded, why is the crease a straight line?
Geom-14. Given two fixed points A, B, and a variable line ℓ through B. Find the locus of
the feet of the perpendiculars from A to ℓ.
Geom-15. Given two fixed points A, B, and a variable line ℓ through B. Find the locus of
the image of A under reflection in ℓ.
Geom-16. Let A, B be points on a given line ℓ. Consider pairs of circles that touch ℓ at A,
B, respectively, and also touch each other at some point P. Find the locus of P.
Geom-17. Given two circles C1 and C2 with centers O1 and O2 , find the locus of midpoints
of the segment X1 X2 , where X1 is a point on C1 and X2 is a point on C2 .
Geom-18. Triangle ABC is arbitrary, and M is the midpoint of its base BC. Squares ABEF
and ACGH are drawn, both lying outside the triangle, and their centers are P and
Q, respectively.
(a) Show that PM = QM, and PM ⊥ QM.
(b) Show that FH = 2 AM, and FH ⊥ AM.
Geom-19. Let a, b, c, d be the sides of a quadrilateral with area ∆. Prove that:
(a) ∆ ≤ 21 (ab + cd);
(b) ∆ ≤ 21 (ac + bd);
(c) ∆ ≤ 21 (a + c)(b + d).
6 PROBLEM SOLVING WORKSHOP

Geom-20. Let the altitudes of △ABC be AD, BE, CF, and let them meet at H (the orthocen-
ter). Show that △AHB, △BHC, △CHA, △ABC have equal circumradii. Also show
that AH · HD = BH · HE = CH · HF.
Geom-21. Given that the midpoints of the altitudes of a triangle lie in a straight line, find
the angles of the triangle.

5. C

Notation: In the problems below, n represents any positive integer.

Comb-1. Show that a convex n-sided polygon has 12 n(n − 3) diagonals. (Here n ≥ 3.)
Comb-2. The party.
(a) At a party which has two or more persons, introductions are done, and some
people shake hands. Show that at the end there will be two people who have
shaken hands with the same number of people.
(b) Show that the number of people who shake hands with an odd number of
people is an even number.
Comb-3. Each integer from 1 till 9 is colored Red or Green. Show that three integers a, b, c
can be found, all with the same color, and with a, b, c in arithmetic progression (i.e.,
with a − b = b − c).
Can this claim be made if we do this with the integers from 1 till 8?
Comb-4. Show that in any group of 6 persons, one can find 3 persons, all of whom know
one another, or none of whom know one another.
Comb-5. I write the numbers 1, 2, 3, . . . , 50 on a blackboard. Then I select any two of the
numbers, say a and b, and replace them by their difference, |a − b|. I repeat this till
there is just one number left on the board. Show that this number is odd.

Comb-6. Can the shape at the right (it shows a

chessboard with two squares cut away)
be covered using 31 dominoes?
(A domino is a 2 × 1 rectangle, i.e., the
shape ).

Comb-7. Can 25 rectangles shaped be used to cover a 10 × 10 square?

Comb-8. There are five tetrominoes (shapes made by gluing four unit squares edge wise):

Straight L T Z Square

The area occupied by these five tetrominoes is 20 unit2 . Can they be used to
make a 4 × 5 rectangle?
 PROBLEM SOLVING IN MATHEMATICS 7

Comb-9. The five tetrominoes (see above) are named as indicated (straight, L, T, Z,
square). Show that using 25 T-tetrominoes one cannot make a 10 × 10 square.
Comb-10. Show that one cannot make a 8 × 8 square using 15 T-tetrominoes and 1 square
tetromino.
Comb-11. Consider the five letters A, D, I, V, Y. Imagine that we arrange them into a five
letter “word” in all possible ways. (Two of the ways are AVIDY and VAIDY.)
Then we arrange all these “words” in alphabetical order, the way they would be
arranged in a dictionary. So the very first word on the list would be ADIVY, and
the last one would be YVIDA. How many words lie between DIVYA and VIDYA?
Comb-12. The six faces of a cube must each be colored, but Red and Green are the only
colors available. In how many different ways can I color the faces of the cube?
(Two colorings are considered to be the same if I can hold two cubes colored in
the two ways in such a way that they look the same.)
Comb-13. Given a △ABC, let P1 , P2 , . . . , Pn be n distinct points on the side BC, and let the
segments AP1 , AP2 , . . . , APn be drawn. Find, in terms of n, the number of triangles
formed by the line segments in this figure.

6. I
√ √
3
Ineq-1. Which is larger, 2 or 3?
√ √ √ √
Ineq-2. Which is larger, 2+ 7 or 3+ 6?
1 1
Ineq-3. Which is larger, 1.0001 + 1.0001 or 1.0002 + 1.0002 ?

Ineq-4. Which is larger, 99100 or 10099 ?

Ineq-5. Show that if a, b are positive numbers such that a + b = 10, then ab ≤ 25.
1
Ineq-6. Let x be any positive number. Show that x + ≥ 2.
x
Ineq-7. Let a, b, c be non-negative numbers. Show that (a + b)(b + c)(c + a) ≥ 8abc.
p √ √
Ineq-8. Let a, b, c, d be non-negative numbers. Show that (a + c)(b + d) ≥ ab + cd.
a b c 3
Ineq-9. Let a, b, c be non-negative numbers. Show that + + ≥ .
b+c c+a a+b 2
Ineq-10. If a, b are two sides of a triangle, what is the largest area that the triangle may
have? What can be said about the length of the third side?
Ineq-11. Given two points A, B, let M be the midpoint of AB. Prove that for every point
P in space, we have: |PA − PB| < 2PM < PA + PB.
Ineq-12. For any triangle, let t be the ratio of the lengths of the medians to the perimeter
of the triangle. Show that 34 < t < 1. Can either of the extreme values be realized
by any triangle?
Ineq-13. A rectangle is inscribed in a circle of radius R. Show that the area of the rectangle
does not exceed 2R2 .
8 PROBLEM SOLVING WORKSHOP

Ineq-14. The perimeter of a triangle is given to be 20 units, and one side is required to
be 8 units in length. What should be the lengths of the other two sides for the area
to be a maximum?
Ineq-15. The sides a, b, c of △ABC satisfy the relation a2 + b2 + c2 = ab + bc + ca. Is the
triangle necessarily equilateral?
√
Ineq-16. Let a, b, c be the sides of a triangle with area ∆. Show that a2 + b2 + c2 ≥ 4 3∆.
Ineq-17. Let R be the radius of the circumcircle of a triangle, and let r be the radius of
the incircle. Show that R ≥ 2r.

7. F  I

FunQ-1. The four numbers game. Given any quadruple (a, b, c, d) of integers, we per-
form the following operation on it, which we call f :
f
(a, b, c, d) −→ (|a − b|, |b − c|, |c − d|, |d − a|) .
f
Example: (1, 2, 3, 10) −→ (1, 1, 7, 9). Now we let f act on the new quadruple:
f f f f
(1, 2, 3, 10) −→ (1, 1, 7, 9) −→ (0, 6, 2, 8) −→ (6, 4, 6, 8) −→ · · · .
Show that no matter which four integers we start with, at some point we reach the
quadruple (0, 0, 0, 0).
FunQ-2. Define a function f on the positive integers thus: f (n) is the sum of the squares
of the digits of n (with n written in base ten). Example: f (25) = 22 + 52 = 29.
Starting with any positive integer n we compute f (n), then we apply f to the
output, then again, etc. Show that the resulting sequence of values either gets
fixed at 1, or settles into a cycle. Example: Starting with 25 we get the sequence:
h25, 29, 85, 89, 145, 42, 20, 4, 16, 37, 58, 89, 145, 42, 20, 4, 16, 37, . . .i.
FunQ-3. For any positive integer n, let f (n) = n + sum of digits of n. (All operations are
in base ten.) Let S be the range of f , i.e., the set of all possible values of f .
(a) Show that 53 is not in S.
(b) Find the largest two digit number not in S.
FunQ-4. Let there be n pebbles in a heap (n > 1). I divide the heap in any way I wish, say
with a pebbles in one heap, and b pebbles in the other heap. Each time I do this, I
record the value of ab on a sheet of paper. I repeat this with each heap remaining:
I divide it into two heaps, and record the product of the number of pebbles in the
two heaps. In the end each pebble is by itself, so no more division can be done.
Now I add the numbers recorded on the sheet. Show that I will get the same sum
no matter which way the various divisions are done.
FunQ-5. Find a function f from N into N, such that f ◦ f (n) = 2n for all n in N.